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Science

Americans see gardening changes as 'plant hardiness zones' shift across half the U.S.

Here's a quick tool to find out if your zone has changed due to warmer temperatures.

Photo by Jonathan Kemper on Unsplash, Map by USDA-ARS and Oregon State University (Public Domain)

The USDA has issued a new Plant Hardiness Zone Map

Millions of American households have a garden of some sort, whether they grow vegetables, fruits, flowers, or other plants. Gardening has always been a popular hobby, but more Americans turned to tending plants during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic for both stress relief and to grow their own food so they could make less trips to the store. For many people, it's a seasonal ritual that's therapeutic and rewarding.

But a shift is occurring in the gardening world. Now, due to rising temperature data, half the country find themselves in a different "plant hardiness zone"—the zones that indicate what plants work well in an area and when to plant them. Gardeners rely on knowing their hardiness zone to determine what to plant and when, but they haven't been updated since 2012.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture updated its Plant Hardiness Zone Map in late 2023, months before people in most of the country start planning their planting. We saw the 10 hottest summers ever recorded in 174 years of climate data between 2014 and 2023, but hardiness zones are actually determined by the coldest winter temperatures each year. Winters are warming at an even faster pace than summers, according to nonpartisan research and communications group Climate Central, but that may or may not be the entire reason behind the zone changes.

The USDA acknowledges that some of the zone shifts could be due to climate change but cautions against using them as hard evidence for it since factors such as improved data collection also contribute to changes in the map.

people planting flowers

Gardening can be a solo or community endeavor.

Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

"Temperature updates to plant hardiness zones are not necessarily reflective of global climate change because of the highly variable nature of the extreme minimum temperature of the year, as well as the use of increasingly sophisticated mapping methods and the inclusion of data from more weather stations," the USDA wrote in November 2023. "Consequently, map developers involved in the project cautioned against attributing temperature updates made to some zones as reliable and accurate indicators of global climate change (which is usually based on trends in overall average temperatures recorded over long time periods)."

At the same time, Chris Daly, director of the PRISM Climate Group at Oregon State University who developed the map with the USDA, told NPR, "Over the long run, we will expect to see a slow shifting northward of zones as climate change takes hold."

As an example of zone shifting, Dallas, Texas, was classified as Zone 8a in 2012, when data showed the coldest winter temperature in the city was between 10 and 15 degrees Fahrenheit on average. In 2023, with data showing the coldest winter temps falling between 15 and 20 degrees Fahrenheit, it's been shifted to Zone 8b.

Some zone shifts resulted in moving to an entirely new zone number, such as Seattle shifting from Zone 8b to Zone 9a. The overall trend was for zones to be pushed northward, but not all areas saw a shift. NPR has a helpful tool here in which you can enter your zip code, see what zone your city was previously in, what zone it's in now, and the temperature changes that caused the shift.

The bottom line is if you have a gardening book with a hardiness zones map printed before 2024, it's time for an updated map, or check online to see what zone you fall in now to give your garden the best chance of thriving this year.


This article originally appeared last year.

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Joy

Man's 'friend shift' gardening habit has people singing the praises of 'body doubling'

He simply invites friends to come sit with him while he does yard work, but folks with ADHD explain why it's a super effective life hack.

Photo by Benjamin Combs on Unsplash

Having a friend hang out while you do necessary tasks is a win-win.

"I wish Pooh were here. It's so much more friendly with two." — Piglet

Winnie the Pooh creator A.A. Milne was onto something when he wrote that line, and not just because he tapped into the common human experience of boredom and loneliness. As a viral X thread shows, things are not just more friendly with two, but also more productive.

Eli McMann shared how his husband started scheduling his friends to come visit him in shifts while he gardens, and people are praising it as a genuinely effective life hack.

"My husband has been doing gardening all afternoon and he has been scheduling his friends in shifts to come and sit with him while he does it so he has company," McCann wrote. "He is not asking for their help. He just wants them to be present. He has given each a watermelon popsicle."

He then shared photos of what he means, with his husband doing yard work and a friend just sitting nearby chatting with him.

It's such a brilliantly simple concept that serves multiple purposes. For one, it allows a person to get things done that need to be done while also having some social time. How often do we lament not having time to get together with friends because we have too much to do? Adding friends to our "things to do" that require mostly physical work and not focused attention and brain engagement is a great way to do both.

But there's also the idea of "body doubling," which people with ADHD use to help them stay on task. Body doubling might sound like a sci-fi/horror term, but it simply means having another person present while you do something you might normally struggle to stay engaged in. While there's no research yet to prove that it works, people with ADHD swear by the effectiveness of simply having another person present while you work at something.

Commenters on Instagram shared:

"As someone with ADHD, I feel this so much. I can accomplish so much when someone is around, or when I find out someone's coming over unexpectedly. 😆 It's true, we need a village."

"Body doubling for the win! It’s awesome that he has willing friends too."

"Body doubling is the best way to get things done. My ex-husband often asks if I need him to come over and double for me. It’s the best. 🙌"

"I love this! I’ve needed to go through a costly storage unit for years, but it’s creepy to go alone. So I haven’t done it. I don’t even want help. Just company 😆"

"We do this in our house. Don’t need help with the chores, just moral support and company for a chat. ♥️"

Other people shared how they've used this habit themselves to both get things done and nurture friendships.

"Growing up in Vermont my friends and I had a rule—each of us would do our own chores, then move on to the closest house of the friend still doing chores - this way we all got to hang out together while getting things done. We always jumped from house to house until we landed on the friend who was still bogged down in chores - that was Leighton, who lived on a small family farm, and had the heaviest workload tending to stock. We would power through his work until he was free and we could all fish together as group in the nearby stream. 35 years later and those guys are still my closest friends."

"My mum in Aus and I in London, clean our kitchen together while on video call... Another way a mum can be there for her child ❤️😊🙏"

"Yes! I’ve asked mom friends to come hang out while I fold so much laundry. Makes it so much more enjoyable."

"This is why I talk to my best friend for about an hour a few times a month. Usually one of us has an annoying chore to do and need exactly this. Used to do it with my grandmums but they’ve passed 😢"

"I do this too. Ask friends to hang out with me while I garden, or sometimes other tasks. It's nice to have the company even if they're just sitting there and chatting with me."

Here's to friends who make everything easier just by being there.

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Education

Gardener shares her easy, 3-part planting formula to keep your plants healthy and pest-free

"Not one time has it been explained this simply."

via MomJeansandGardenThings/TikTok

Ashley Nicole simply explains companion planting.

Gardening influencer Ashley Nicole (@momjeansandgardenthings) has an easy tip for everyone having a hard time with their plants dying and getting destroyed by pests. It’s a time-honored technique called “companion planting,” where your main crop is surrounded by plants that repel bad insects and attract the good ones.

Nicole founded the blog Mom Jeans and Garden Things, where she shares “tips, tricks, and ideas on ways to grow your own herbal beauty routine.”

“If you’re a beginner gardener and you’re confused about companion planting, this simple formula is going to make everything make sense,” Nicole says in the clip. “There are three main components to companion planting. There’s the main crop … the flower, and the herb.”

For example, Nicole shares a pot featuring her main crop, a tomato plant, accompanied by onions, oregano, marigolds and chives.

@momjeansandgardenthings

Quick and Easy guide to Companion Planting #gardening101 #beginnergardenertips #companionplanting #newgardeners

Here’s how they work together: “The marigold is going to act as an attractant for pollinators, the oregano is going to act as a repellent,” she said. “Marigold also acts as a repellent. Now I have an additional herb here … our chives and onions, they are going to act as our herb and act as a repellent to pests.”

This unique arrangement keeps pests away from plants while attracting essential pollinators. Commentators praised Nicole for making a complex gardening technique simple and easy to learn.

"This was the best explanation I’ve heard since I’ve begun my container planting on my deck," Meribah2022 wrote. "Simply explained," Gabriela Dominguez added. "I tried this last year, and it worked beautifully."

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Family

It was her first Mother's Day without her 'goofball' mom. She honored her in the sweetest, silliest way.

"I decided to do something that would’ve had her crying with laughter…"

@chacha.blue/TikTok

A TikTok user dressed up as a bee to honor her goofy, gardening mom for Mother's Day.

Mother's Day can cause a mix of emotions for a lot of people. Some of us have mothers who raised and nurtured us in love, with whom we treasure our time. Some of us have complicated or downright toxic relationships with our mothers that make Mother's Day little more than a painful reminder. Some of us have had to say goodbye to a beloved mother earlier than we would have hoped, making Mother's Day a bittersweet day of memories and remembrance.

When we miss our mom on Mother's Day, it can be hard to figure out how to commemorate the holiday. Do we grieve? Do we celebrate? Both? Neither?

Every person's experience with the loss of a loved one is different, but one TikTok user shared how they celebrated their first Mother's Day after their mom's passing in the sweetest, silliest way.

In a post on Tiktok, user @chacha.blue wrote, "First Mother’s Day without my mom... I decided to do something that would’ve had her crying with laughter and spread wildflower seeds in a bee costume."

The video shows the user joyfully prancing around in a bee costume, complete with honeycomb glasses. The "bee" carries a bag of seeds, tossing them about and joyfully meeting people they encounter. The end of the video shows a photo of their mom in the garden, with the words "Love you mom."

The video was also shared on Reddit, where it has gone viral.

"Today was my first Mother’s Day without my mom…" the Reddit post read. "She loved gardening and was a total goofball. So, in her honor I ran around the neighborhood throwing wildflower seeds in a bee costume and met some fun folks while at it... I just wanted to share since it made this day a little easier."

So sweet. Watch:

@chacha.blue

Visit TikTok to discover videos!

(For those wondering about the wisdom of randomly tossing seeds around, the poster clarified in the comments that the seeds were flowers that are native to California, where they live, and were specifically slow-spreading varieties so as to avoid an invasive plant situation.)

People loved the video, especially those who were also missing their moms on Mother's Day.

"If this is how you are celebrating her, your mother must have been absolutely awesome," wrote one commenter. "May her memory be a blessing to you."

"I love this. I’m also spending Mother’s Day with my mom who was gone too soon," wrote another. "Thanks for honoring your mom well. You left my day on a much better note. Hugs."

"I am picturing your mom running along with you all day but her bee suit has little angel wings," shared another.

Honoring a loved one who has passed in a way that we know they would have loved is a lovely form of remembrance. And when that loved was was "a goofball," the sillier the remembrance the better. Perhaps we can all go out and do something for someone we miss that would tickle their funny bone this week, and bring a little joy to others in the process.

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